1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a retail system and, more particularly, to a computer network for compiling information in a retail system.
2. Description of Related Art
Discount coupons are a popular means to stimulate sales of products such as grocery store items. In 1992, approximately 310 billion coupons were distributed and 7.7 billion coupons were redeemed. It has been difficult, however, to monitor conventional coupon distribution and redemption schemes to provide information on program effectiveness and customer demographics.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a computer network for automatically compiling information in a retail system.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a computer network for processing transactions in a retail system, and to compile information on coupon program effectiveness and customer demographics.
To achieve this object of the present invention, there is a method in a system including a store with a plurality of products, and a plurality of register stations, each including a bar code reader, and a first processing unit executing a first program in a first memory, wherein the system further includes a plurality of second processing units, each executing a second program in a second memory. The method comprises the steps, performed multiple time for each register station to perform a checkout transaction for multiple customers, of using the bar code reader of a register station, to generate a first signal identifying a product selected by a customer; sending the first signal to the first processing unit of the register station; sending the first signal to a respective second processing unit in the plurality of second processing units; subsequently sending, from the respective second processing unit, a second signal to the first processing unit; and determining, in the first processing unit, a total amount due from the customer, by receiving the first signal and second signals.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is a store system for a commercial system with a plurality of products. The store system comprises a plurality of register stations, each register station including a bar code reader that generates a first signal identifying a product selected by a customer; a first processing unit executing a first program in a first memory; and a signal path that transfers the first signal to the first processing unit, wherein each register station is associated with a respective second processing unit that executes a second program in a second memory and sends a second signal to the first processing unit, wherein the second processing unit executes the second program multiple times for multiple customers; and a signal path that transfers the first signal to the second processing unit, and wherein the first processing unit includes logic that determines a total amount due from the customer, by receiving the first and second signals.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, there is a store system in a retail system including a store with a plurality of products, and a plurality of register stations, each including a first processing unit, and a second processing unit. The store system comprises the following, in each register station, for processing multiple customers in each register station: means for generating a first signal identifying a product selected by a customer; means for sending the first signal to the first processing unit; means for sending the first signal to the second processing unit; means for subsequently sending, from the second processing unit, a second signal to the first processing unit; and means for determining, in the first processing unit, a total amount due from the customer, by receiving the first signal and second signals.